Academic journals charged by US consumer watchdog

By Timna Jacks, Education Reporter

Two hundred Australian academics have had their credentials hijacked by a "predatory" academic publisher that has been charged by the US consumer watchdog with deceiving researchers.

Now Australian lecturers fed up with having their names used to lend credibility to fake academic journals are calling on the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission to follow the lead of the US and crack down on one of the most prominent journal factories, India-based OMICS group.

Hundreds of Australian academics at the country's top universities, hospitals and a government department, are named as editors of publications owned by a company accused of illegal behaviour, under fresh charges laid by the US consumer watchdog.Credit:Louie Douvis

The US Federal Trade Commission requested a permanent injunction against OMICS, its owner, and two of its subsidiaries last week, alleging the online publications named academics as editors without their consent, and falsely claimed research was subject to industry standard peer reviewing.

It comes as Australian universities told Fairfax Media they are cracking down on predatory journals publishing low-grade research, which in some cases are riddled with grammatical errors, and supportive of fringe ideas, such as linking autism and vaccines and denying that HIV/AIDS exists.

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Australians named as editors were from the Group of Eight universities, the CSIRO, a NSW government department, and top hospitals, including Royal Children's Hospital and St Vincent's Centre for Applied Medical Research.

The National Tertiary Education Union is writing to the ACCC to demand that the watchdog investigate.

Professor of Law at the University of Western Australia, Michael Blakeney, was named as editor-in-chief of OMICS journal Intellectual Property Rights without his consent.

He remains the editor despite requesting in 2013, 2014 and again this week to have his name, photo and curriculum vitae removed.

"I have had nothing to do with OMICS ... I routinely delete its various emails as junk," he said.

An OMICS subsidiary, Conference Series, also runs conferences in Australia and internationally, and was charged by the US Commission with falsely claiming academics would present at its conferences.

Nine OMICS conferences are scheduled in Melbourne this year, and 21 in Australia next year, with registration costing up to $1400, according to its website.

A Monash University PHD student who did not want to be named paid $300 to attend an OMICS Conference in the US, lured by academics listed as speakers.

When she arrived, she realised that none of these academics would appear at the event.

"It looked legitimate on the website, I haven't ever heard of predatory publishing at all."

The ACCC said it had not received complaints about predatory journals.

The US commission also targeted OMICS' subsidiaries, IMedPub and Conference Series, and the president and director, Srinubabu Gedela.